Out of Sight, but not out of Mind
by doctoring
Summary: Because of Hermione's time turner, Draco starts seeing Hermione everywhere. He notices her more and more until the day she punches him. Then, he really starts seeing things. / Takes place during their 3rd year. / Written for Writer's Month. Trope Prompt: time travel


_Was that… Was that Granger? But wasn't she just… and SHE PUNCHED ME! How could she be there now? Was she even there to begin with?_

Draco looks back to the forest's edge, just in time to see Granger turn and run off. _Is she really there?_

He then looks back further, seeing her smiling while shaking out her hand, standing by the giant rock they were previously hiding behind.

He keeps his hands on his sore face as he continues to run back to the castle.

Draco has never had Hermione more on his mind until this year. But it's not like he wanted to think about her. He couldn't help it. She seemed to be everywhere!

He noticed her all year, in the weirdest places. At first it seemed as though she was trying to hide, and was successful at that, because Draco couldn't find her afterwards to torment her. Then she would mysteriously appear in class, when she was just running in the opposite direction, towards a dead end. Draco suspected trap doors and secret passages, but no amount of searching or secret-revealing spells showed any proof of that.

It was almost as if she would appear suddenly or disappear suddenly, and Draco was never in the right place at the right time to catch it. He would think he saw her one moment, passing by, but upon looking again, she's nowhere to be found. Days of double-, triple-, quadruple-takes resulted in her being spotted then completely out of sight, as if she never existed.

_If only_, Draco would scoff to himself.

He blames this weird disappearing act on her invading his thoughts constantly, as well as his constant observation of her.

_I mean, what else can it be? She's just a filthy mudblood. She's no importance to me._

But still, he finds himself wondering about her, watching her, studying her. He's learning so much more about her, her likes, her dislikes, her habits, her quirks, her skills, the sound of her laughter, the way she thumbs the edge of her quill when she's thinking about what to write next.

He doesn't like knowing all that. Not one bit. And feels overwhelming embarrassment when someone talks about her and he has to resist the urge to correct them.

The last time it happened he immediately took a cold shower and mentally scolded himself.

_Were you seriously about to act like Granger in class, commenting on and answering everything, while correcting them on how Granger acts in class? Seriously!?_

He didn't like having the muggle-born on his mind constantly. He'd much rather have anyone else on his mind besides that bloody know-it-all mudblood.

_Well, anyone but Potter or a Weasley. _

But he couldn't help it. She was always appearing. Even for a brief moment, she always managed to find a way to show up and ruin his day.

Then she punched him.

He can't imagine how hard she had to hit him in order for him to hallucinate like he did. He had at times thought he was going mental, seeing her when she wasn't really there. But after she punched him, it really did look like she was standing by the forest. She lingered then, before running off.

_But how could that be? When she was still there… still in the same spot she was when she punched me…_

Draco raises a hand to his face, flinching when he makes contact with the tender skin. He was still in pain and starts to feel rage swelling up inside him.

_Wait… this is Granger… She's not usually one for violence… She did hit Weasley with a roll of parchment once, but he probably deserved it… I mean, the girl calls wizard chess 'gruesome' for crying out loud!_

Draco starts to feel a bit proud. He was able to push Hermione that far, to commit a violent act. He felt like he broke her and smirked at the thought. But this quickly subsided, and shame took over.

He sat there, on the edge of the hospital bed, wondering why he was feeling shame for breaking her like this.

Then it hits him. It's not because of that, it's because he pushed her, he provoked her, he had bullied her like he had done ever since she arrived at Hogwarts.

_Wait. Bullying? I don't bully people. I just tease them, sure, but I don't bully. And most of the time, they deserve it anyways! I'm just telling them like it is, that's all._

Draco felt a pang in his chest, knowing he was wrong, knowing he can no longer convince himself that he's just a victim of people unable to take his criticism.

_Okay… sure… mudbloods are inferior… that much is true… but Granger… She can cast spells better than me, has a better grasp on potions, charms, and, well, pretty much every other class except flying. She's not as shit as Neville, but she's still pretty bad._

_So, even for a mudblood, I guess you have to show her some respect._

And with that, Draco is floored.

He realized he's right, and this is the one time he doesn't want to be right.

_She deserves to be respected, but for someone like me, with how I've dealt with her so far, she just deserves to be left alone. To have just a bit of peace._

He flops back onto the hospital cot, frustrated. The fall sends a jolt of pain back through his face. He flails his arm out to his side, looking for the ice pack to numb his face again.

He's still enraged and embarrassed that he was punched by Granger, but at the same time, he couldn't fight the weird feeling that came with realizing how good of a wizard she really was. He didn't like that thought, so he just tried brushing it aside.

_Whatever… if it had been any other person to have punched me, by father would be hearing of it right now!_

-the end-


End file.
